Michael, you've earned a place among greats

The first time I saw Michael Vaughan was when, as a young Yorkshire
pro, he did 12th man duty for England during a Headingley Test in the
Nineties.

Some young players in that situation can be in awe and others do not
care about what they are doing. Vaughan was neither. I remember looking
over at him in his corner of the dressing room, with all his
fashionable gear, and thinking what a classy way he conducted himself.
He had something about him.

Lip service: Vaughan plants a kiss on the Ashes urn after the 2005 series win

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It was that something which led Duncan Fletcher and me to take a bit of a punt on him for the South Africa tour in 1999.

We had spoken to a few people at Yorkshire about him but they had told us they were not sure he would make big scores for England. He soon proved them wrong.

Vaughan, of course, went on to become one of the very best England captains. To win more than half your games in charge is a phenomenal achievement, and while I do not like comparing people of different eras it is hard to think anyone could have been better.

He just ticked so many boxes, an excellent leader of men, a cool and calm captain who developed into an astute tactician.

The Ashes of 2005 were basically won at Edgbaston and one piece of Vaughan captaincy as that match reached its amazing climax demonstrated he was then at the absolute peak of his powers.

Action man: Vaughan was a class player and calm captain

With just four needed for an unlikely Australian victory, not many captains would have left a sweeper on the cover boundary, as Vaughan did, when Steve Harmison bowled to Brett Lee.

But Lee smacked a cover drive which looked as though it had won the Aussies the Test - and the Ashes - until we realised it was going straight to Simon Jones on the boundary. Only a single was scored, Michael Kasprowicz then gloved to Geraint Jones and the rest is history.

He was tactically brilliant by 2005. It was an area Duncan and I were a bit concerned about when he took over because we didn't know anything about his tactical acumen when he was a player, but it was an area that Michael grew into very quickly.

The early days of captaincy by committee were soon replaced by a leader absolutely in command. He certainly outcaptained Ricky Ponting in 2005 and that was the decisive factor in England winning the Ashes.

Sparkle: Michael Vaughan celebrates after winning the 2004 Test series against the West Indies

Vaughan was certainly the best captain for England's needs when he took over from me. My style was right for the time I took over but by the time I handed over to Vaughan, the England players did not need me barking at them. They needed Vaughan to encourage them to express themselves, to play without fear. My job had been to instil fear into them!

You never want to see a class player and captain come to the end, especially as Michael has spent some time in the wilderness, but the timing of his retirement yesterday is perfect for himself and the England team.

There is no doubt that, if he scored a hundred for Yorkshire, we would have all been speculating on whether it would lead to an Ashes recall, and people like Ravi Bopara and Paul Collingwood do not need that. It is hard enough playing the Australians without playing against people within our own county game, too.

There is no shadow over Andrew Strauss and Andy Flower now as they mould the side in their own style.

Michael will be fine in retirement. He has always had an ability to switch off, to not let cricket consume him and he will move on now with plenty of other things in his life. He will also know that, when he walks into Lord's, the gateman will always say 'morning captain' and it will make him feel good whenever he hears it.

Captaining England is the ultimate and Vaughan did it as well if not better than anyone else who has ever done the job. He can walk away with an enormous amount of pride.